The Illinois General Assembly ended their session on time — Friday, May 31, 2013. This year their main focus was on the budget, hydraulic fracturing (better known as fracking), pension reform, and the concealed carry of weapons. By the end of session, the legislature had negotiated the $35.4 Billion general revenue budget, passed a concealed carry bill, and Illinois will now regulate fracking. No final action was taken on pension reform so the Governor is calling the legislature back to Springfield to take action on pension reform. The scheduled date for the Special Session will be on Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Leaders are meeting prior to returning in an attempt to reach an agreement.

Clearly, many other issues were debated during this session between January to May. Below please find the major issues of interest to physicians. Please contact me if you have questions or comments about this legislation. In addition, please use this outline as talking points with your legislators over the summer